Can I get a blackberry for Verizon without the expensive data plan? Is there one available for Verizon that can hop on wifi?

I'm not much of a talker (on the phone). I barely use my allotted minutes each month. I'm grandfathered into this old dirt cheap plan. Combine that with a government employee discount and I pay about 40 bucks a month. I don't want to change that.

I'm afraid that if I get a new blackberry with Verizon, they will automatically slap a data plan on there and double my monthly bill. I spend close to 10 hours a day online and I don't need to fill the rest with my phone.

However, it would be nice to have a full keyboard, and be able to check email on wifi (I spend a lot of time in places with free wifi) without dragging my laptop everywhere.

If such a phone exists, I would probably grab it on ebay just so I don't change my plan. Ideas/suggestions?

My g/f has a blackberry on verizon without a data plan. Don't know about the wifi, though.posted by inigo2 at 12:27 PM on December 19, 2008

If the phone supports wifi, you won't need a data plan. It's wifi just like any computer has, and you should be able to connect to access points and make use of the net without issue.posted by Cat Pie Hurts at 12:29 PM on December 19, 2008

If the phone supports wifi, you won't need a data plan.

Um yes, I know that. That is why I want one which supports wifi.posted by special-k at 12:33 PM on December 19, 2008

Have you investigated the deals available to Blackberry users with AT&T? You enter your email address and they tell you what discounts you can get as an employee of specific organizations. I work for a large employer and my quote was $45/month (-ish, it might have been $49), including the data plan. Of course, I am still prevaricating because I only pay $8.25/month for my Tracfone and I am not a big talker either. But it would be nice to have a Blackberry.
You could also consider a Palm TX, which has an onscreen keyboard and stylus. It's pretty neat over wi-fi. not too keen on email that relies on javascript, but I read and send from my Gmail account regularly on it - good for traveling. The Palm comes with the added advantage of something that beeps at you when you are about to miss a meeting.posted by Susurration at 12:38 PM on December 19, 2008

You can also buy a Palm Treo 700wx and use a WiFi card.posted by healthytext at 12:50 PM on December 19, 2008

I don't know if an iPod Touch is out of the question, but my brother is in a similar position and he just uses his iPod for the wifi. No full keyboard, so that part isn't met.posted by KAS at 12:52 PM on December 19, 2008

If you do not pay for a data plan with verizon (very unlikely, but if you purchased one from a 3rd party you could change the ESN online), and received e-mail on the device, you'd be paying per for data per kb, which is very expensive.

a data plan does double your bill. A $40 bill will go up to $80 after discounts.posted by ijoyner at 1:06 PM on December 19, 2008

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